XML is the foundation that enables multichannel publishing for publishers and media companies, but authors, editors, and reviewers have struggled to work with it effectively. At last, the tools and technology have caught up. Today organizations can choose whether they want XML-first, XML-early, or XML-late workflows, and even whether they want the XML hidden from their users altogether. Christopher Hill, vice president of product management, recently spoke at the MarkLogic World conference and demonstrated RSuite CMS, the industry’s first enterprise content management system powered by MarkLogic. In this presentation he details the benefits of XML-first, XML-early, and XML-hidden workflows in various publishing scenarios from leading publishing organizations using RSuite CMS.

When you'd like to learn more about RSuite CMS and how it can support your publishing organization, contact us to arrange a custom demo:

Content management and digital asset management have traditionally been approached as distinct operations. There was limited interaction between content and assets during editorial development mostly coming together as print layouts were created and finalized. Workflows and tools were developed to address the separate requirements around the two components. However, the emergence of digital publishing has greatly increased options around how and what to publish. No longer are publishers constrained to print deliverables. New hardware devices, Internet applications, social media sites, and communication opportunities offer rich opportunities for publishers to use content in a variety of new ways. To take full advantage of this, publishers need to adjust the tools and techniques employed to manage content.

What is needed is a platform in which publishers can manage traditional assets (e.g., .jpg, .gif,.mov, .mp4, .mp3, etc.) to coexist with what was traditionally content (e.g., Word, XML, PDF, etc.). This platform should house both items natively. This becomes a strategic content hub that can be deployed either as a replacement for or as a layer over the existing tools and workflows that may still be required to support existing publishing channels. However, such an approach requires unique characteristics not seen in traditional CMS or DAM systems.

Download our latest white paper and learn how the unification of content and assets is possible today and how you can get started.

Half of all Americans now own some sort of smartphone or tablet device, according to a recent Pew Research initiative. This is roughly similar to the number of Americans who own laptop computers, but the transition has occurred in over very few years, and these numbers are expected to double in the coming years. This trend is largely what is driving most activity in the content business today. The ability to present meaningful content where and when it is requested and at a price that is acceptable is a major challenge. It is becoming increasingly clear that content that is not digitized is not as valuable as content that is.

Digitization has become a necessity for content driven businesses. Many publishers have developed digitization strategies mainly as a reaction to market trends. Some publishers have adopted a “wait and see” mindset betting that technology will improve and that prices will come down. This may have been a good strategy in the early adoption era. However, technology and software have evolved, and the pricing for both technology and offshore services are about as low as they are going to get.   Digitizing your content is one of the necessary costs of admission to be able to play in today's marketplace. 

Download our free white paper, "Content Digitization Strategy 101" and understand the following concepts, which must be part of any content management and publishing plan:

• How you develop content that has a high digital readiness factor

• Strategies for reclaiming content that does not have a high digital readiness factor

• Planning to upgrade legacy content that is not digital into digital readiness

• How you manage, store, and distribute your digital ready content

• How do you maintain a focus on business value as a guide to all these activities

  
  
  
  

Stresses on the educational publishing industry are profound. While the challenges of core curriculum requirements and state mandates have been part of the equation for many years, new expectations are adding to the pressures:

• Textbook pricing
• Flash-to-HTML5 conversion
• Exponential increase in asset management
• iBooks 2

All these factors have escalated the need to manage and organize content in a structured and strategic manner.

On April 25 from 2:00 to 3:00 pm, join Chad Crume, director of content systems at Macmillan Higher Education and  David Saracco, vice president of business development at RSI Content Solutions as they discuss the evolving educational publishing landscape and explore how a strategic approach to content management can serve educational publishers now and into the future. Eliot Kimber, senior solutions architect will also join the conversation as he details how his open source DITA for Publishers project streamlines content transformation and ebook production.

WEBINAR: Challenges of Educational Publishing and How Content Management Can Help 

An Interview With Chad Crume, Director of Content Systems at Macmillan Higher Education | Thursday, April 25, 2013 2:00  - 3:00 EDT

PROSE AWARDS | http://proseawards.com/prose-live.html

TWITTER | #PROSEAwards

On January 17th, more than 550 Philadelphia-area executives joined SmartCEO magazine in celebrating 50 fast-growth companies at the Philadelphia Future 50 Awards ceremony. Barry Bealer, CEO and co-founder at RSI Content Solutions was honored for 10 years' of consistent company growth.

Fast forward to the 1:31 mark to learn the answer to the question above!

Today, stresses on the publishing industry are more accelerated than most other industries. New expenses are added to reach publishing targets and those expenses don't always add to total revenue. A content management system (CMS) helps publishers manage, store, transform, and delivery content in a sustainable and economical way. A CMS is a publisher’s factory. 

Want to learn how your organization can benefit from RSuite CMS?

The New York Times recently highlighted a topic that's been in debate for quite a while: bogus reviews. In this world where anyone can be a publisher or a reviewer and the loudest voice is sometimes heard over reason, my predominant thought is "caveat emptor." The story in The New York Times focuses on the situation with Amazon's book reviews. Look up any book on Amazon and then scroll down to read the vast amount of reviews. Even out-of-print books have a large number of reviews. There's the well read (?!) "hall of fame reviewer" Harriet Klausner who has more than 28,000 reviews logged on the site. Even as a self-proclaimed speed reader and former acquisitions librarian, that amount of reviews averages out to 6.5 reviews a day, everyday….for more than 12 years. With all due respect to Mrs. Klausner, I find it hard to take a review from her seriously.

Joe Wikert recently suggested an eloquent solution to this "slippery slope of bogus reviews." In yesterday's blog post he recommends that Amazon only allow reviews from customers who actually bought the book. Simple and logical. While this may mean I can no longer enjoy reviews of things like the Hutzler Banana Slicer or the BIC Crystal for Her Pen, I would prefer a fair analysis about an impending purchase rather than one contrived to falsely promote or slander.

It will be interesting to see how Amazon decides to handle this situation.

In the meantime, I think no matter the purchase---a book from Amazon, an expensive household appliance, or a major investment in enterprise software---the buyer needs to consider a few things and take the time to perform due diligence. Following are five tips I apply to validating any review and determining if the purchase is a worthy investment

1. Does the reviewer provide a pen name?
   I'm less likely to value someone's opinion who uses the moniker idle45neato rather than Marianne Calilhanna.
2. Is there a way to contact and engage in discussion?
   Even if I don't follow up with a reviewer, I like to see that there is the option to email or a web form where I can engage in further conversation.
3. Does the reviewer list credentials or is she/he affiliated with a valid company/organization?
   I want to know why I should trust someone's opinion. I often use LinkedIn to research additional information like education, company affiliation, work experience, and qualifications.
4. If the review is via a blog post, are comments allowed?
   When a blog post disables comments, I am immediately leery. One-way communication equates to a virtual shout and I can't see how that's helpful or believable.
5. Have I talked to other people who use the product?
   For big-ticket items, I think most people seek out other opinions. Both good reviews and poor reviews are valid in my book. Understanding why someone may provide a poor review is equally important because I recognize that what's important to me may be different from what's important to someone else.